Mirrors: Becky Nesel, Geology Communicator
The AdaMarie Mirrors reflect back to us the many roads (often winding, never smooth) to success! Real stories of real women to see yourself reflected in. At first, you’ll see Becky in this mirror, but eventually, we hope you’ll see yourself.
Welcome, Becky Nesel!
A geology communicator and content creator, Becky Nesel’s stories let the world know that science rocks (sorry, we had to).
Getting to Know You:
Field of Work: Science and Communication
Your STEM letter: S
Expertise In: Geology
Current Company: Myself! ‘Geo Beck’
Job Title: Geology Communicator, Content Creator
One-liner about what you’re working on: I've recently been focused on geotourism and have been working with tourism boards around the country to share the geologic wonders of their state or their region through social media content.
Currently geeking out over: The building stones of old buildings and the fossils I can find in their walls or floors.
STEM hero (alive or dead!): Marie Tharp (Adventures of Mapping the Sea Floor)
Tell us about your professional journey – how did you get where you are now?
I always knew I was interested in rocks and the earth from a young age, but it wasn’t until I was already in college that I realized I could actually study it and have a career in it. In high school, I wasn’t interested in science and was a little too confident that I would *never* study a science in college - “Too hard, too much work, I can’t handle it!” In my second year of college, I was looking at a list of options for majors offered at my college and saw ‘Geology’ listed. I decided to switch that night, and as soon as I took that first introductory course, that was it for me. I finished my degree in 2019, and then had a job in the construction and engineering industry for a little under a year. I wasn’t very happy at this job - it just didn’t feel like the right fit for me. I did learn a lot, but I felt like I wasn’t able to practice my natural curiosity and passion for the science of geology in the way I could in college when I was actively studying it. Fast forward to March 2020 and me leaving that job,
I felt pretty lost. I wanted to feel that excitement and passion again. So, I decided to upload a video to YouTube about why I loved geology.
This led to me making a few more videos on YouTube before starting to also make short form videos on TikTok, and eventually Instagram. Since then, I’ve gained a community of 130,000 people across my social media channels, started a geology TV show with local production company and streaming platform Hudsy, and getting paid for telling people about how cool rocks are!
We’re also curious to know your personal story and upbringing. What has made you “you”?
I grew up in the Hudson Valley, which I still call my home. My family spent a lot of time outdoors in the Catskills, Adirondacks, and at home going hiking, kayaking, camping, you name it. This is where my curiosity for the natural world first began. My dad was always telling me about the different trees and other things he knew about nature.
This led me to being more curious and asking more questions, and luckily that hasn’t gone away!
As a child I also loved to read (still do) and was always picking up nonfiction books from the library at school to learn as much as possible about every topic I could get my hands on. At 26 years old, I still feel the same love and comfort from being in the Hudson Valley, and I still feel that endless curiosity and love for the world around me.
We know that real life isn’t a smooth and linear journey. What was your initiating moment that led you to your calling - can you tell us about that moment, what helped you move forward, what you learned/discovered?
A huge part of my job is public speaking and being seen and heard by others. Believe it or not, this was actually never a comfortable position for me.
I never auditioned for the solos in the school choir, hated when it was my turn to read out loud from the textbook in class, and dreaded when it was my turn to give my presentation in front of the class for a school project.
The turning point for me was actually a couple of moments. The first was when I attended a geology conference with my university my senior year of college where I had to present the poster I had made for my undergraduate research project. It wasn’t even a formal presentation or talk, just a session in a room with other people and their posters where I had to stand in front of my work and explain it to people who came up to me. Although most of these people were also scientists, they didn’t know the specifics of my project and it was my responsibility to communicate it with them in an efficient way. I remember feeling so excited when people were interested in my work and not only understood, but connected to what I was telling them. At the end of the session, my voice was gone but I felt energized and accomplished.
The second moment was when I had to give a talk about that same research project at a small meeting of professional geologists. This was a slightly different situation and I was nervous to be giving an actual presentation, standing in front of a group of people and pointing to PowerPoint slides. Here, I felt the same feeling of excitement, connection and accomplishment and I could tell that the audience was not only interested in what I was saying, but understood it and related to it! This is where I discovered that I have this skill and passion for connecting with others through sharing information, especially information I’m personally interested in. A few years later, when I eventually started this journey with science communication online, I felt the same when sharing my videos and posts with others on the internet. This adventure so far, has shown me that I can accomplish things I never thought possible.
You’re a working woman in a performance-driven industry. Where do you find balance?
I’m honestly still trying to figure that out. It was actually pretty recent (December 2022) that I decided to take the leap and go full-time with my science communication work. It’s going really well so far, thankfully, but I do struggle sometimes with setting boundaries with myself regarding work, and separating work and pleasure.
My partner of 9 years, David, our cat Mo, and our home together really is a major source of grounding and peace for me. If I’m ever feeling stressed or need to talk something out, David is always there to lend a listening ear and a voice of reason and support. My family is wonderful, and my mom is one of my closest friends and also my biggest fan.
I have struggled with anxiety for pretty much my whole life, and over the past year have started medication and therapy which have both been life-changing.
In general, connection is a huge source of support for me personally, and this carries into my work. I have amazing friends, and I am always looking to meet other people who are interested in the same things as me, or who know things that I want to learn more about. I have a couple of friends who are ecologists, botanists, naturalists, etc. and we go on walks in nature together to learn from each other about the different things we are each knowledgeable in. Although I feel incredibly lucky to enjoy the work that I do and that I get to work for myself, I try to dedicate time to my other hobbies outside of what I do for my job. I love reading (fiction and nonfiction), baking, antiquing, I’ve recently started birding, and I also love to travel.
If you were something in Outerspace, what would you be?
A space rock hurtling through space - because who wouldn't want to be something as mysterious and ancient as that?!
We’d love to feature your work! How can we spread the word about what you’re doing?
I have a TV show with Hudson Valley-based production company and streaming platform Hudsy! You can watch the pilot episode now (and more episodes soon) HERE, or by going to Hudsy.tv and searching 'New York Rocks with Geo Beck'. You can also follow me on Instagram (@geobeckly), TikTok (@geobeckly), and my YouTube channel, 'Geo Beck'. If you'd like to learn a bit more or contact me, check out my website: geo-beck.com